Boxing Bear is a growing brewery again.

Oh, there are no new taprooms planned (yet), or anything like that. Things are expanding quickly on one side of the business, though, and that will be driving the brewery going forward.

I recently caught up with the trio of Justin Hamilton, director of brewing operations/co-owner, Jay Knigge, director of operations/co-owner, and Felicia “Fee” Gonzales, general manager, for the latest entry in our Look Back/Look Ahead Series.

“2023 was interesting because it seemed like one of the first years it was back to normal since COVID,” Hamilton said. “Kind of leveling out what we saw wholesale versus taproom sales. Getting more active numbers. There’s obviously changes in people’s lifestyles from that; people are buying more package beer, they’re going out to actual locations less. So we’ve been trying to pivot our business on that, as well.”

Boxing Bear has partnered with a distributor for the first time, with Admiral Beverage Company helping to get beers like Uppercut IPA and Chocolate Milk Stout to every corner of the state.

“It was a change for us, a learning experience in a positive way, and just kind of trying to figure out our footing in that kind of game,” Hamilton said. “Trying to place our products that we want in our lineup, figuring out all the fun stuff that goes with that wholesale game, trying to get those products (out on the shelves). We are usually a pretty forward-thinking company, but this has forced us to be even more so. We’re looking six month, years ahead, where before we were doing that, but now things are more set. I think it’s been a curve to try to get used to, but I think we’ve done a pretty job on it.”

While wholesale has expanded, the rest of the business has been aimed at getting back into a more normal routine.

“With all that, this last year has been settling into more regular business operations, trying to hit our stride again,” Knigge said. “Making sure that we can focus on other aspects of the business instead of just staffing and being open, making sure we can be open.”

Hamilton said it was also nice to not be spending a lot of time opening a new location. Boxing Bear has grown rapidly in recent years with the addition of the taprooms at the Bridges on Tramway and West Downtown, plus the move of the entire brewing operation to the Firestone location.

“2023 was nice to be able for all of us to focus on our actual jobs and zones instead of having to be so spread out to do some extra stuff to open some place,” he said.

For Knigge, this year gave him the chance to really crunch the numbers and focus on the trends at each brewery, as well as with wholesale. Boxing Bear was one of the most active beers at festivals all over the state this year, ranging from Red River Oktoberfest to Ullr Fest near Los Alamos to Blazin’ Brewfest in Las Cruces. That was all part of the plan to increase excitement for their beers in the areas of the state where Boxing Bear did not previously have a presence.

“We’re seeing really good numbers already,” Knigge said. “On the distribution side, a lot of growth. On the taproom side, it’s generally getting real, actual data from those.”

“It was definitely a big push for us to make sure that we have the product and availability for those southern locations,” Hamilton added. “We’re pretty much statewide now. And, the next question, are you going out of state, I will say no.”

As previously mentioned, 2023 was not a year where staffing was such a major issue as the previous two years. It has enabled Gonzales to really get to a point where she can build a team in the front of house that truly cares about the company as a whole.

“I can tell you that craft beer is a very big passion for a lot of people,” she said. “We’ve had a lot of passionate team members come in with experience. We’ve had a lot of team members come in without any previous craft beer experience. Just seeing them elevate themselves, dedicate themselves to producing here at a local brewing company.”

“I think retention is what every business strives for,” Hamilton added. “But, it’s been hard. Fee has been doing a great job of not only doing a great job of increasing our retention, but also sifting through the candidates.”

“It’s not easy and I can honestly say that Boxing Bear is going to take the best interest of the individual, whether that’s within the company or whether that’s outside of Boxing Bear,” Gonzales continued. “We want everybody to love what they do, we want everybody to enjoy what they do. I would really like to get to the point again where our front-of-house staff members and back-of-house staff members, get that experience of what it’s like to work in a craft brewery business like it was before COVID hit us.”

Hamilton said that he and the rest of the brewing team have really been enjoying a lot of feedback from the front-of-house staff, both about customer trends at the taprooms, and when staff members travel about and see how things are going at other breweries in New Mexico and beyond.

“We’ve always tried (new) stuff, but I think right now we’re trying to keep our ears open more to front-of-house staff and the customer,” he said.

Gonzales that in turn helps the front of house.

“I think that’s what Justin and Jay do a really good job of, especially being in 2023 right now, just elevating the business aspect and (also) simplifying it, making it the best we can for the front-of-house staff members and our guests,” she said. “We have new POS (point-of-sale) systems, integrating different ways of service in the taproom. That’s something we’re always going to have to keep evolving with.”

For the first time, Boxing Bear did a staff collaboration beer, where employees from the different taprooms were invited to come to the brewery and help create a new specialty brew.

“We were actually able to functionally have a brew day with a lot of staff members, have their input on the beer,” Hamilton said. “That’s something we’ll definitely continue, anything that encourages people’s ability to learn. There’s plenty of times where you can just serve a beer. Even if you know a little bit about it, you can definitely go through the motions. We want people, at least staff and people working with us, to understand how we feel about it and how we’re trying to present stuff.”

Keeping things energized at the taprooms will be key going forward. Sales were down slightly this year, though Hamilton said that varied by the season (summer up, winter down, as per usual). It has become an industry-wide trend, he said, but it’s one that most breweries are trying to push back against and get people excited to come back and have a pint or two over the bar.

“I would say that we are trying to get more people aware of this one,” Hamilton said. “Firestone has been a place where we’ve been trying to push events more, just to get people in to see (it). We’re pretty proud of it, we think it’s a good place. We’ve had some fun, cool events here that have turned out really well. The more we do it, the more people see it’s a hidden gem off Paseo. That’s where we’re at, is trying to figure out how to not only see what’s performing better, try to focus direction on this place because it’s so new.”

The other three taprooms are more visible from the main roads they sit upon (Alameda, Central, Tramway), and have the advantages of sizable local neighborhoods nearby. Still, Firestone does draw in a sizable daily crowd of happy hour drinkers from the many businesses around it.

“Our customer base is building here,” Gonzales said.

Firestone has thusly become home to many events that were previously at the original taproom near Corrales, such as Bearfest and Dogtoberfest, plus new events like the Bear Affair beer-and-wine dinner pairings.

“Our focus has really been this location and really growing the word that we’re here,” Knigge said. “I think we’ve done an excellent job. This location is up 20 percent over the last year, every other location is down just a little bit.”

“Talking to everyone in the brewing industry, and the restaurant industry, most places are slightly down,” Hamilton added. “Back in 2021 and 2022, people were so ready to get out of the house. Now things have calmed down. ‘I need to get back to work, I need to stop spending money all the time.’ ”

While to some extent things like inflation have leveled off a bit, it is not secret that everything costs more for breweries. Whether it is in shipping, equipment, or ingredients (barley, hops, yeast, adjuncts), prices are not going down. Throw in the surge in cost of living around town, and it still makes for a tough environment for Boxing Bear and other breweries.

“I think things are getting better as far as the frustrations (compared to) last year,” Hamilton said. “It’s something we’ve had to eat the last couple years. We haven’t wanted to raise prices or do any drastic changes. We’re doing well with what we have. We’re very lucky to have someone Kevin (Davis, co-owner) who understands how budgets work and is really strict with us. It’s easy to spend money. It’s hard to stop spending money.”

The Boxing Bear team still has plenty of optimism for 2024. On the wholesale side of things, Hamilton said that working with Admiral has made things more focused when it comes to planning out beer releases, and that should benefit customers and staff.

“Next year, we’re really focusing on getting higher volumes of certain speciality beers out,” he said. “Specifically in cans, so that they can be on shelves for longer. A big thing that we like to do is get specialties in cans and then it’s (quickly) gone for that season. It’s hard to get it. Right now we’re looking to do enough volume in specialties to have them available for a month or two, still fresh, just from different batches.”

So, yes, there will more of popular seasonal/specialty beers like Sucker Punch DIPA, The Red Glove, Super and Totally Cereal Hazy, OktoBEARfest, and more.

“That’s been a whole scheduling thing that we’re definitely doing,” Hamilton said. “We can handle it. We’re looking into the future more.

“Other than that, we’re going to keep working with our wholesaler. Continue to try to push these events that we’ve been working on in any location. Firestone is probably going to be the one to continue to push. We feel that people are aware of most of our locations except for this one. It’s right in the center of this city. It’s so right there that I think it’s accessible to most people. There’s going to be a push for that.”

Customers can also expect more collaborations with other breweries, artists, and businesses. The ones they have already done with Rashan Jones of High Desert Flameworks and Gallo Negro Tattoo have been big hits, so expect more of those, too.

Boxing Bear has already brewed 400 more barrels this year than in 2022, and Hamilton said he expects that growth to continue in 2024.

As for another capital project, like a fifth taproom, that has not been ruled out.

“Nothing right now,” Hamilton said. “We’ll see how Kevin feels tomorrow. I don’t want to say things are out of the picture. We have enough friends and colleagues in other industries where we get random calls to come check out this place. It’s not to say that it couldn’t happen if it could benefit us and give us that presence.”

In many ways, Boxing Bear is aiming to carry over all that was successful in 2023 to 2024.

“A lot of next year is going to be a repeat of this year,” Knigge said. “Sales are settling in, making sure that we’re on budget, making sure that staffers are performing well, focusing on quality of beer, and really just making sure we have what customers are asking for. And, also making sure our staff is taken care of. These last two years were the first years where we’ve offered benefits, PTO, healthcare, 401k, and all of that. Honestly, 2023 has been the first year since COVID where everybody is cashing in their PTO.”

A happy, relaxed staff? Now that is a great thing to see. A big, big thanks to Justin, Jay, and Fee for taking a half hour out of their busy schedules. And, of course, for the Vantablack, because one does not visit a Boxing Bear taproom in November without indulging in some of that wonderful Russian imperial stout.

Keep supporting local!

— Stoutmeister